Pokemon Go Community Day (October 2019) – Start Times, Shiny Trapinch, And More

Update: The October Pokemon Go Community Day has concluded, but trainers can look forward to the upcoming Halloween festivities. Niantic has officially announced this year’s spooky seasonal event details. The Halloween celebration launches on October 17 and introduces special costume-wearing Pokemon, the debut of Shiny Yamask, and the arrival of a new Legendary Pokemon, Darkrai. Continue reading for the original Community Day coverage.

October’s Pokemon Go Community Day is now active worldwide. This monthly gathering occurs on Saturday, October 12 and provides trainers with a limited-time opportunity to capture rare Pokemon species, acquire special moves unavailable through normal gameplay, and benefit from various temporary game enhancements.

Community Day events in Pokemon Go typically maintain a strict three-hour duration, though specific features change each month. To ensure you’re fully prepared for October’s festivities, we’ve compiled this comprehensive guide covering all essential details from event schedules and featured Pokemon to the unique move you can obtain through evolution.

Pokemon Go News & Announcements

Every Community Day highlights a specific “featured Pokemon” that appears in wild encounters at significantly increased rates throughout the event period. October showcases Trapinch, the Ground-type antlion Pokemon originating from Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire generations. Beyond the substantially improved Trapinch encounter rates during October’s Community Day, trainers will also experience their initial opportunity to discover a Shiny Trapinch variant. These alternate coloration versions remain uncommon discoveries, so dedicated hunting persistence is essential for Shiny collectors.

Trapinch evolves into Vibrava at level 35, which then evolves into Flygon at level 45. This evolutionary line transitions from pure Ground-type to Ground/Dragon dual-type, creating interesting strategic possibilities for your battle roster. The Community Day format provides the perfect opportunity to accumulate enough candy for these evolutions while hunting for optimal IV specimens.

For trainers pursuing Shiny Trapinch, we recommend focusing on areas with high Pokemon spawn density such as parks, shopping centers, and locations with multiple PokeStops. Using Incense throughout the event increases your encounter rate by approximately one Pokemon per minute, significantly boosting Shiny hunting efficiency. Remember that Shiny rates during Community Day are typically around 1 in 25 encounters, compared to the standard 1 in 500 rate for most Pokemon.

We have exciting news that will ground your opponents! Earth Power serves as the exclusive Community Day move for Trapinch’s evolutionary line! Prepare to dominate battlefield terrain! pic.twitter.com/y293puZgEJ

Beyond the dramatically increased Pokemon appearances, each Community Day offers trainers the chance to secure a special event-exclusive combat move. Standard procedure involves evolving the featured Pokemon to its final evolution stage before the event concludes, which automatically teaches it an attack normally unavailable through regular gameplay mechanics.

Earth Power is a powerful Ground-type charge move with 100 base power that also has a chance to lower the opponent’s defense. This makes it particularly valuable for Flygon, providing strong coverage against Electric, Poison, Rock, Steel, and Fire-type opponents. The move synergizes exceptionally well with Flygon’s Dragon-type moves, creating a versatile offensive Pokemon capable of handling multiple battle scenarios.

Critical timing consideration: You must evolve Trapinch into Vibrava and then into Flygon during the event hours or up to two hours after the official end time to guarantee Earth Power acquisition. Post-event evolutions will not receive this exclusive move, making strategic evolution planning essential for maximizing your Community Day benefits.

October’s Community Day includes several valuable in-game bonuses beyond the featured Pokemon. Trainers can benefit from triple catch Stardust throughout the event, making this an excellent opportunity to build your Stardust reserves. Additionally, Lure Modules and Incense activated during Community Day hours maintain their effects for three full hours, providing extended duration for your hunting sessions.

Pro Tip: Activate a Star Piece at the event’s start to amplify your Stardust gains to 4.5x the normal amount. Combine this with quick-catching techniques to maximize your Stardust accumulation during the limited window.

Avoid These Common Mistakes: Don’t waste time appraising every Trapinch during the event—focus on catching as many as possible first, then review your collection afterward. Also, ensure you have sufficient Pokemon storage space and enough Pokeballs before the event begins to avoid unnecessary interruptions.

For optimal candy accumulation, use Pinap Berries on every Trapinch encounter until you’ve secured enough for your evolution goals (typically 125 candy for full evolution chain). Remember that trading Trapinch with friends can yield additional candy, especially with guaranteed lucky trades if exchanging 2016-era Pokemon.

Looking beyond Community Day, the Halloween event beginning October 17 introduces Darkrai as a new Legendary raid boss alongside spooky costumed Pokemon. This seasonal celebration typically features ghost-type Pokemon spawns and special research tasks, making it another excellent opportunity for dedicated trainers.

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